The historically established spatial dispersion and uneven population of the vast Russian territory dictate the necessity for continuous improvement of all types of land transportation with railways as the main basis for foreseeable future. New transcontinental routes would significantly accelerate the economic and cultural exchange between the countries of the rapidly developing Pacific region, which is gradually becoming more and more closely uniting as the “Mediterranean Sea of the Future”. At this stage it may be quite promising to implement large and long-term strategic economic projects that can adequately include Russia in the global system of economic relations and open new historical horizons. The objective process of creating an integrated system of international transport links and transit corridors is due to the rapid integration of the global economy, increased transport mobility of the population, the growth of intercontinental passenger flows and cargo turnover. Transcontinental highways are designed to connect the main macroeconomic regions of the world: they are able to optimize existing traffic flows and to create a reliable future infrastructure base for stabilizing the overall system of international economic relations. (In Russian.)